The Princess Bride

Leaving aside Disney’s animated movies, The Princess Bride must be the most fairytale American fairytale, and this is despite the fact that the script is often ironically subversive and communicates with the viewer to explicitly defend some of the clichés. It’s a shame that at times it’s spoilt by the routine TV look, because Reiner is not afraid to come up with bold ideas (the switch of the main character, the unexpected change in settings and atmosphere) and the narration flows along smoothly. Also, Robin Wright looks great, Mandy Patinkin creates one of the best fairytale characters ever – his search for revenge is perfectly portrayed and supported by a monologue with deserved cult status. A very nice movie. (27.12.2019)

A fairy tale that doesn’t even feel like a fairy tale, more like a parody of fairy tales. I laughed more than I’d expected. The story features many great characters, but I was most impressed by the irresistible Spaniard played by Mandy Patinkin. The logic holes sometimes became abysses. I can't figure out why the princess lived in some shepherd's hut with a lascivious-looking squire, but I chose to ignore such matters as I had great fun. (20.02.2017)

Well... I mean... I have to say that compared to the book, The Princess Bride disappointed me. The plot is more or less identical and the dialogue and all the "catchphrases" are the same (Goldman wrote the script himself, so it's not surprising), but somehow I missed the magic that made me read on and on, the funny narrative language, the fiction with the non-existent Morgenstern... And what's worse - most of the things I laughed at in the book, I didn't find funny here at all. Partly it was Cary Elwes, partly it was Knopfler's really ugly music and the cheap-looking production design in general (yes, I know that was probably the intention)... In the end, it amounts to about three stars. If I hadn't read the book, I might add. (02.12.2011)

This fairytale did not really impress me in any significant way. It is a sort of comedy + fairytale + fantasy, which is quite normal for America. It's quite fast-paced and there are interesting characters, Robin Wright is beautiful, but as a whole, it did not captivate me. It definitely does not serve as a suitable equivalent to Czech fairytales for me. It is different, it has a different poetic feel, and it didn't touch me emotionally - I mean in terms of emotions, not that it moved me physically. (14.01.2014)

Probably one of the best fantasy tales I've seen. Perhaps only Stardust has similarly resonated with me, and it too wasn't afraid to take a slightly different path in its film adaptation than mainstream audiences would expect. The Princess Bride stands out above all for its great characters, who (thank goodness!) are not one-dimensional or cookie-cutter, with very few exceptions. In fact, thanks to their imperfections and flaws, they are much closer to real characters, which often results in unexpectedly funny and touching moments. It's really a very nice fairy tale. [85%] (21.08.2022)